Three individuals hailing from Kanyakumari, employed in Kuwait, have been apprehended on Tuesday morning close to Prong’s Lighthouse off Mumbai for travelling in a Kuwaiti vessel with out permission, police stated on Tuesday. They have been intercepted by the crew of the Chaitrali patrol boat from the Yellow Gate police station and have been handed over to Colaba police.

Speaking to Hindustan Times, deputy commissioner of Police, Ports, Sanjay Latkar stated, “Our vessel was on patrol on Tuesday morning and found three persons in a Kuwaiti boat. We brought them to the shore. They claimed that they were from Kanyakumari and worked for a company in Kuwait. They decided to run away as they were not paid and not given food for nearly two years. Their passports have been confiscated by their owners. They navigated with the help of a GPS and it took ten days to reach Mumbai. Our crew checked them and handed them to Colaba police.”

The trio claims that they have been checked twice en path to Mumbai, stated Latkar.

Language limitations hindered communication with the Colaba police, because the three people have been unable to converse in Hindi, Marathi, or English.

The Kuwaiti vessel coming undetected to Mumbai is seen as a giant lapse on the a part of the Navy and Coast Guard. Despite common patrols by Naval and Coast Guard Dornier plane, in addition to the Navy’s P-8i plane, and the vigilance maintained by Navy and Coast Guard helicopters, the vessel managed to slide by way of unnoticed.

Naval sources initially claimed to have first intercepted the vessel at Prongs Lighthouse earlier than alerting the police. However, DCP Latkar countered this, asserting that the vessel was halted by the police who then notified the Navy.

The Naval spokesperson, refusing to acknowledge any lapse on their half, deferred to the continuing police investigation.

Attempts to contact Coast Guard Additional Director General West Okay. Suresh and Inspector General Bhisham Sharma have been unsuccessful, with their spokesperson saying they have been on go away.

The defence forces have all the time claimed that they scan seas completely and their plane keep vigil within the sea. But they’d no reply as to how the Kuwaiti vessel may come so near Mumbai from Kuwait with out getting detected.

Last 12 months, a yacht with arms was discovered off Raigad district and it was broken in inclement climate and defence forces had their very own reasoning for the lapse in detection of this vessel.

A senior officer of the Mumbai Port Authority stated that the vessel us 30 metres lengthy and was stopped by Mumbai police. The officer stated after preliminary interrogation, they could possibly be handed over to Yellow Gate police station. All three occupants had Aadhar playing cards.